JP2023013062A - Positioning system, marine vessel, and marine trailer - Google Patents

Abstract

To allow for identifying relative position information between a marine vessel and a trailer.SOLUTION: A wave signal generator 201 provided in a trailer 200 emits wave signals from at least three different positions with a known relative positional relationship. A wave signal receiver 107 provided on a marine vessel 100 receives the wave signal from each position of the wave signal generator 201. The control unit 101 identifies relative position information based on the received wave signals.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

The present invention relates to localization systems for identifying relative positions between objects, ships and marine trailers.

BACKGROUND ART Techniques for specifying relative positional information between a trailer and a ship are known, mainly for the purpose of smoothly landing a small ship or leaving the water surface. Patent Literature 1 discloses a technique of acquiring position information of a trailer and controlling a propulsion device to detach and mount the hull.

In Patent Document 1, a plurality of transmitters are arranged on the trailer and a receiver is arranged on the hull, the distance between the trailer and the hull is obtained from the strength of the signal received by the receiver, and the hull relative to the trailer is obtained from the direction of the signal. have obtained their own orientation. Further, in Patent Document 1, cameras such as a stereo camera, an infrared camera, and a TOF camera are arranged on the hull, and the distance and self-azimuth are acquired from the captured three-dimensional image.

International Publication No. 2016/163559

However, since there are few specifications equipped with the camera disclosed in Patent Document 1, it is desired to propose other position specifying methods other than the method disclosed in Patent Document 1 as options.

An object of the present invention is to specify relative position information between a ship and a trailer.

A locating system according to one aspect of the present invention comprises at least three different locators located on a first object, either a vessel or a trailer for loading said vessel, and having known relative positions to each other. A wave signal generator for emitting wave signals from a position and a wave signal located on a second object, which is the other of said ship or said trailer, for receiving wave signals emitted from each position of said wave signal generator. and a relative relationship between the vessel and the trailer including at least the azimuth of the second object as seen from the first object based on the wave signals from the respective positions received by the wave signal receiving unit. and a position specifying unit that specifies target position information.

According to this configuration, wave signals emitted from at least three different positions whose mutual relative positional relationship is known in the wave signal generating section arranged on the first object are arranged on the second object. Received by the wave signal receiver. Based on the wave signals from the respective positions received by the wave signal receiving unit, relative position information between the ship and the trailer, including at least the bearing of the second object as seen from the first object, is obtained. It is specified by the position specifying unit.

According to the present invention, it is possible to specify relative position information between the ship and the trailer.

1 is a side view showing an example of a trailing system to which a position specifying system is applied; FIG. 1 is a top view showing an example of a trailing system; FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a trailing system; FIG. FIG. 4 is a schematic top view of the trailing system showing the arrangement of wave signal generators and wave signal receivers; It is a figure which shows an example of the image imaged by the camera, and the schematic diagram which looked at LED from the up-down direction. FIG. 11 is a schematic top view of the trailing system showing the arrangement of wave signal generators and wave signal receivers in the second embodiment; 4 is a timing chart showing sound signal generation and sound signal reception; FIG. 11 is a schematic top view of the trailing system showing the arrangement of wave signal generators and wave signal receivers in the third embodiment;

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

(First embodiment)
FIG. 1 is a side view showing an example of a trailing system to which a position specifying system according to a first embodiment of the invention is applied. FIG. 2 is a top view showing an example of a trailing system. This trailing system 1000 includes a vessel 100 and a trailer 200 on which the vessel 100 is loaded. Trailer 200 is a marine trailer towed by a vehicle 99 steered by a driver. Vessel 100 is, for example, a so-called jet boat.

The trailing system 1000 is a system that allows the vessel 100 to be detached from the trailer 200 and attached to the trailer 200 . A sloped portion (ramp) R that slopes downward toward the bottom of the water is formed on the waterside. When the vessel 100 is moved (detached) from the trailer 200 on the land 97 to the water surface 98 (at the time of detachment), the driver drives the vehicle 99 to move the trailer 200 to the slope R as shown in FIG. move. Here, when the mode is switched to the automatic trailer mode, the marine vessel 100 automatically moves away from the trailer 200 . As a result, the detachment operation is automatically performed.

When moving (mounting) the boat 100 from the water surface 98 to the trailer 200 on the land 97 (during mounting), the driver first moves the trailer 200 to the slope R. Here, when the mode is switched to the automatic trailer mode, the marine vessel 100 is automatically steered and moves toward the trailer 200 . As a result, the trailer 200 is automatically mounted. Specific work of automatic detachment and attachment can be realized by a known method such as disclosed in International Publication No. 2016/163559.

It should be noted that it is efficient to perform the above-described automatic mounting work mainly after the control unit 101 as the position specifying unit specifies the “relative position information” between the ship 100 and the trailer 200 . Note that it is not essential that the ship 100 is automatically detached from or attached to the trailer 200 .

Here, "relative position information" is defined as an amount viewed from above as shown in FIG. 2, and includes distance L, ship heading φ, and trailer heading θ. Assume that the reference positions for defining the relative position information are the reference position PT on the trailer 200 and the reference position PB on the ship 100 . Note that the reference position PT and the reference position PB may be any parts.

Distance L is the distance between trailer 200 (first object) and vessel 100 (second object). That is, the distance L is the linear distance between the reference position PT and the reference position PB. The ship azimuth φ is the azimuth (direction) of the ship 100 as seen from the trailer 200 . The trailer azimuth θ is the azimuth (orientation) of the trailer 200 as seen from the ship 100 .

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of trailing system 1000 . A position specifying system according to the present embodiment is realized mainly by control section 101 , wave signal generating section 201 and wave signal receiving section 107 .

The ship 100 includes a hull 100a (see FIGS. 1 and 2) and a propulsion device 120 provided on the hull 100a. This marine vessel 100 obtains propulsion by ejecting a jet from a propulsion device 120 .

The propulsion device 120 includes an engine 125 for generating driving force, a forward/reverse switching mechanism 124 for transmitting the driving force of the engine 125 in an adjusted state, and an injection nozzle 126 for ejecting a jet. Watercraft 100 includes a propeller (not shown) to which the driving force of engine 125 is transmitted via forward/reverse switching mechanism 124 . The propulsion device 120 generates a jet flow from the injection nozzle 126 by rotating the propeller due to the driving force. In addition, the ship 100 adjusts the traveling direction of the ship 100 by changing the direction of jet flow from the injection nozzle 126 generated by the rotation of the propeller.

Vessel 100 includes control unit 101 , ECU (Engine Control Unit) 115 , shift CU (Control Unit) 114 and steering CU 116 . The control unit 101 controls the entire vessel 100 including the propulsion device 120 . Control unit 101 includes CPU 102 , ROM 103 , RAM 104 and timer 105 . A ROM 103 stores a control program. The CPU 102 implements various control processes by expanding the control programs stored in the ROM 103 into the RAM 104 and executing them. A RAM 104 provides a work area when the CPU 102 executes the control program.

ECU 115 , shift CU 114 and steering CU 116 respectively control engine 125 , forward/reverse switching mechanism 124 and injection nozzle 126 based on instructions from control unit 101 .

Vessel 100 includes sensor group 109 . The sensor group 109 includes a tidal current sensor, a wind speed sensor, a hook sensor, a landing sensor, an acceleration sensor, a velocity sensor, and an angular velocity sensor (none of which are shown). The hook sensor detects that the hook of the trailer 200 is hung on the hull 100a. The water landing sensor detects that the injection nozzle 126 of the propulsion device 120 is positioned underwater. The acceleration sensor detects the attitude of the hull 100a by detecting the inclination of the hull 100a in addition to detecting the acceleration of the hull 100a. The velocity sensor and angular velocity sensor respectively detect the velocity (hull velocity) and angular velocity of the hull 100a.

A steering wheel 112 and a shift lever 113 are provided on the hull 100a of the watercraft 100 . Control unit 101 controls the ejection direction of the jet flow ejected from injection nozzle 126 via steering CU 116 based on the rotation angle of steering 112 that has been operated. Further, the control unit 101 performs control to change the forward/reverse switching mechanism 124 via the shift CU 114 based on the position of the operated shift lever 113 .

Ship 100 includes memory 111 , display unit 110 , setting operation unit 117 , communication I/F 106 , wave signal reception unit 107 and GNSS reception unit 108 . Memory 111 is a non-volatile storage medium. The display unit 110 has a display and displays various information based on instructions from the control unit 101 . The setting operation unit 117 includes operation elements for operations related to ship maneuvering, setting operation elements for performing various settings, and input operation elements for inputting various instructions (all not shown).

Communication I/F 106 communicates with an external device wirelessly or by wire. The GNSS receiver 108 periodically receives GNSS signals from GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite Systems) satellites. The wave signal receiving unit 107 will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5. FIG. Signals received by the wave signal receiver 107 and the GNSS receiver 108 are supplied to the controller 101 .

Trailer 200 includes wave signal generator 201 and communication I/F 202 . Communication I/F 202 communicates with an external device wirelessly or by wire. Communication I/F 202 also communicates with communication I/F 106 . Any communication method may be used between the ship 100 and the trailer 200 .

Wave signal generating section 201 and wave signal receiving section 107 in this embodiment will be described. FIG. 4 is a schematic top view of trailing system 1000 showing the arrangement of wave signal generator 201 and wave signal receiver 107 .

A wave signal generator 201 arranged in the trailer 200 emits wave signals from at least three different positions with known relative positional relationships. Specifically, in this embodiment, three LEDs, ie, a first LED 131 , a second LED 132 and a third LED 133 are employed as the wave signal generator 201 . Relative three-dimensional coordinates (relative positional relationship) of other LEDs based on a certain LED are known. For example, the arrangement position (second position) of the second LED 132 and the arrangement position (third position) of the third LED 133 are known with respect to the arrangement position (first position) of the first LED 131 . In this embodiment, it is assumed that the wave signal is an optical signal, preferably infrared light.

On the other hand, in this embodiment, a camera 134 (imaging device) is employed as the wave signal receiver 107 arranged on the ship 100 . The camera 134 is an infrared camera that receives optical signals emitted from each position of the wave signal generator 201 in the imaging range. In this embodiment, as an example, the arrangement position of the first LED 131 is the reference position PT (see FIG. 2), and the arrangement position of the camera 134 is the reference position PB.

For convenience, the directions are defined with reference to when the trailer 200 is on the horizontal plane. The longitudinal direction of the trailer 200 is the YT direction, the front is the +YT direction, and the rear is the -YT direction. The YT direction corresponds to the detachment/mounting direction of the ship 100 . Also, the horizontal direction of the trailer 200 is defined as the XT direction. The front direction of the ship 100 is the YB direction, the front is the +YB direction, and the rear is the -YB direction. The horizontal direction of the ship 100 is defined as the XB direction. The camera 134 is arranged in the front part of the hull 100a, and the +YB direction (forward) is the imaging direction.

When the trailer 200 is on the horizontal plane, the LEDs 131, 132, 133 are not aligned when viewed from above and below. With respect to the first LED 131, the LEDs 132 and 133 are located at different positions in the YT direction (front-rear direction) and at different positions in the vertical direction. Also, the second LED 132 and the third LED 133 are positioned at different positions in the XT direction (horizontal direction). As an example, the LEDs 132 and 133 are arranged in the +YT direction and at a higher position than the LED 131 . The LEDs 132 and 133 are arranged at common positions in the YT direction.

FIGS. 5A and 5B are diagrams showing an example of images captured by the camera 134 in the "position specifying process" for specifying relative position information. The captured image is displayed on the display unit 110 .

"Position specifying processing" is performed in the following procedure. First, the driver of the vehicle 99 moves the trailer 200 to the slope R, and the LEDs 131, 132, and 133 start lighting. Note that the LEDs 131, 132, and 133 blink in a specific pattern in order to make it easier to distinguish them from other light-emitting objects. The operator instructs the control unit 101 to start position specifying processing via the setting operation unit 117 . Thereby, the camera 134 starts imaging.

Next, the operator steers the vessel so that the three LEDs 131, 132, and 133 are included in the imaging range. The control unit 101 generates a captured image including the LEDs 131, 132, and 133 as objects, and causes the display unit 110 to display the captured image as shown in FIGS. When the control unit 101 determines that all of the LEDs 131, 132, and 133 are included in the captured image, it extracts bright spots from the captured image. A bright point corresponds to each position of the LEDs 131, 132, and 133 in the screen, and is a position with higher brightness than the surroundings.

Next, the control unit 101 identifies "relative position information" based on the positions of the bright spots in the image and the relative positional relationship between the LEDs 131, 132, and 133 described above. The specified relative position information is displayed on the display unit 110 and output by sound, and is also stored in the memory 111 . Also, the relative position information is updated as needed during execution of the position specifying process. In order to specify the relative position information, the control unit 101 does not necessarily display the captured image on the display unit 110, and may extract the bright spots by internal processing.

An example of specifying relative position information from the extracted bright spots will be described with reference to FIGS. First, in the captured images shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B, bright points 141, 142, and 143 respectively correspond to the positions of LEDs 131, 132, and 133 viewed from camera 134 (that is, within the imaging range).

The control unit 101 identifies the trailer orientation θ based on the position of the bright spot 141 in the horizontal direction. Here, when the trailer 200 is positioned directly in front of the ship 100 (in the +YB direction), the trailer azimuth θ is "0", so the bright spot 141 is positioned in the middle of the screen in the horizontal direction. The distance D0 from the right edge of the screen to the middle position in the horizontal direction is known. Since the angle of view is known, the relationship between the difference between the distance D3 and the distance D0 from the right end to the position of the bright spot 141 and the trailer azimuth θ is also known. For example, in the example shown in FIG. 5B, the control unit 101 can specify the trailer azimuth θ from the distance D3 and the distance D0 from the right end to the position of the bright spot 141 . Known values and correspondences, including those that appear later, are stored in the ROM 103 in advance.

FIG. 5(c) is a schematic view of the LEDs 131, 132, and 133 viewed from above and below. It is assumed that the triangles having the LEDs 131, 132, and 133 as vertices when viewed in the vertical direction are equilateral triangles each having a side length of a.

The control unit 101 identifies the ship heading φ as follows. First, as shown in FIG. 5B, the control unit 101 obtains an intermediate position C1 between the bright points 142 and 143 in the image. Next, the control unit 101 obtains the interval D1 between the bright point 141 and the intermediate position C1 in the horizontal direction. In addition, the control unit 101 obtains a distance D2 in the horizontal direction between the bright points 142 and 143 in the image. Here, when the ship 100 is positioned directly behind the trailer 200 (in the -YT direction), the ship azimuth φ is "0".

The control unit 101 can specify the ship heading φ based on the interval D1 and the interval D2. As shown in FIG. 5(c), a point on an extension of the LED 131 and on a line segment connecting the LEDs 132 and 133 when viewed from the ship 100 is P1. Let distance d be the distance between point P1 and intermediate position C1 on the line segment connecting LEDs 132 and 133 . For the ship heading φ, φ=arctan{d/(a√3/2)} holds. For the distance d, d=D1/D2 holds. Therefore, the ship heading φ is calculated by φ=arctan{(D1/D2)/(a√3/2)}.

The control unit 101 identifies the distance L as follows. First, as shown in FIG. 5B, the control unit 101 obtains the distance D2 in the horizontal direction between the bright points 142 and 143 in the image. The apparent interval D2 in the image increases as the distance L decreases if the ship's bearing φ is constant, and increases as the ship's bearing φ approaches 0 if the distance L is constant. The correspondence between the distance D2, the ship's heading φ, and the distance L is known. Therefore, the control unit 101 can specify the distance L from the interval D2 and the ship's heading φ. As an example, assuming the arrangement of the LEDs 131, 132, and 133 shown in FIG. 4, the distance L is calculated by L=coefficient K×distance D2/cosφ. Coefficient K is a constant of proportionality between interval D2 and distance L when φ=0.

The relative position information (distance L, ship azimuth φ, trailer azimuth θ) specified in this way is used when the vessel 100 is mounted on the trailer 200, for example.

According to this embodiment, the wave signal generator 201 provided in the trailer 200 emits wave signals from at least three different positions with known relative positional relationships. Based on the wave signals from each position received by the wave signal receiver 107 provided on the ship 100, the relative position information is identified. Specifically, the control unit 101 extracts bright spots from an image of the light signals emitted from the LEDs 131 , 132 , and 133 , which are the wave signal generating unit 201 , captured by the camera 134 , which is the wave signal receiving unit 107 . Then, the control unit 101 specifies relative position information based on the positions of the bright spots in the image and the relative positional relationship. As a result, the trailer azimuth θ, the ship azimuth φ, and the distance L can be specified as the relative position information between the vessel 100 and the trailer 200 .

Also, when the trailer 200 is on the horizontal plane, the LEDs 131, 132, and 133 are not arranged in a straight line when viewed from above and below. The LEDs 132 and 133 are located at different positions in the front-rear direction with respect to the first LED 131 . Also, the LEDs 132 and 133 are positioned at different positions in the left-right direction. From these, the trailer azimuth θ, the ship azimuth φ and the distance L can be easily calculated.

Moreover, the LEDs 132 and 133 are located at different positions in the vertical direction with respect to the first LED 131 . As a result, the luminescent spot corresponding to the LED 131 and the luminescent spots corresponding to the LEDs 132 and 133 are less likely to overlap in the captured image, making it easier to distinguish between them. Therefore, erroneous extraction of bright spots can be suppressed, and the accuracy of specifying relative position information can be improved.

Note that it is not essential that the LEDs 131, 132, and 133 have different heights, and they may be arranged on the same plane. Even in this case, when the trailer 200 is moved to the inclined portion R, the LEDs 132 and 133 are normally positioned higher than the LED 131, so it is easy to distinguish the corresponding bright spots. be.

In addition, since the LEDs 131, 132, and 133 emit infrared light, the influence of disturbance can be suppressed. In addition, since the LEDs 131, 132, and 133 blink in a specific pattern, they can be easily distinguished from other light-emitting objects, which can also improve the accuracy of specifying relative position information. It should be noted that it is not essential that the optical signal is infrared light or that it blinks.

Note that, instead of the LEDs 131, 132, and 133, predetermined markers may be arranged at the same arrangement positions as the LEDs 131, 132, and 133, and relative position information may be specified from an image captured so as to include these markers as subjects. good. In this case, the control unit 101 can specify the relative position information by, for example, extracting three feature points corresponding to the marker in the captured image and performing calculation processing in the same manner as in the case of the bright points.

(Second embodiment)
FIG. 6 is a schematic top view of trailing system 1000 showing the arrangement of wave signal generator 201 and wave signal receiver 107 according to the second embodiment of the present invention. In the present embodiment, components employed as wave signal generating section 201 and wave signal receiving section 107 are different from those in the first embodiment, and the method of specifying relative position information is accordingly different. Other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment.

In this embodiment, as wave signal generator 201, three sound generators, speakers SPA, SPB, and SPC, are employed. Three-dimensional coordinates (relative positional relationships) of other speakers (eg, speakers SPB and SPC) relative to one speaker (eg, speaker SPA) are known. In this embodiment, the wave signal is a sound signal, preferably an ultrasound signal.

On the other hand, in the present embodiment, two microphones (hereinafter referred to as microphones MC1 and MC2) are employed as wave signal receiving section 107 arranged on ship 100 . Microphones MC<b>1 and MC<b>2 receive sound signals emitted from respective positions of wave signal generator 201 . In this embodiment, as an example, the placement position of the speaker SPA is set to the reference position PT (see FIG. 1), and the placement position of the microphone MC1 is set to the reference position PB.

When the trailer 200 is on the horizontal plane, the vertical heights of the speakers SPA, SPB, and SPC are substantially the same. The positions of the speakers SPA, SPB, and SPC when viewed from above and below are different from each other. Also, the positions of the microphones MC1 and MC2 when viewed from above and below are different from each other.

FIG. 7 is a timing chart showing sound signal generation by the speakers SPA, SPB and SPC and sound signal reception by the microphones MC1 and MC2. In FIG. 7, the horizontal axis indicates the passage of time. Microphones MC1, MC2 receive sound signals emitted from speakers SPA, SPB, SPC, respectively. In FIG. 7, the reception time of the sound signal by the microphone MC1 is shown as a representative.

The generation time of the sound signal from each position of the wave signal generator 201 is different from each other. By shifting the sounding timing, it becomes easy to distinguish the source of the sound between the microphones MC1 and MC2, and erroneous identification can be suppressed. Specifically, sound signals are generated at intervals of a predetermined time (for example, 20 ms) from the speakers SPA, SPB, and SPC in this order. In order to easily distinguish the source of the sound, the predetermined time Time is set to a time longer than the time required for the sound to travel the distance between the adjacent speakers.

As shown in FIG. 7, the sound signal generation times at the speakers SPA, SPB, and SPC are times TAS, TBS, and TCS, respectively. It is assumed that the sound signal is generated in the form of pulses, and the generation time is defined as the rise time of the pulse. The reception times of the sound signals emitted from the speakers SPA, SPB, and SPC are times TAM, TBM, and TCM, respectively.

As described below, the control unit 101 controls the generation time of each sound signal from each position (time TAS, TBS, TCS) and the reception time of each sound signal at the microphones MC1 and MC2 (time TAM, TBM, TCM) and the relative positional relationship, the positions of the microphones MC1 and MC2 are specified. The positions of the microphones MC1 and MC2 are specified, for example, as two-dimensional coordinates on the horizontal plane relative to the speaker SPA. Then, the control unit 101 identifies relative position information (trailer azimuth θ, ship azimuth φ, distance L) based on the identified positions of the microphones MC1 and MC2.

In the "position specifying process" according to the present embodiment, the driver positions the trailer 200 on the slope R and causes the speakers SPA, SPB, and SPC to generate sound signals. The operator instructs the control unit 101 to start position specifying processing. As a result, the microphones MC1 and MC2 start receiving sound signals. The control unit 101 records the reception time of the sound signal. The sound signal may be generated repeatedly at regular intervals, and the control unit 101 may employ an average value of multiple reception times.

First, each coordinate is defined as follows. Assume that the coordinates of the microphones MC1 and MC2 to be obtained are (x, y). Let the coordinates of the speaker SPA on the horizontal plane be (xA, yA). Let the coordinates of the speakers SPB and SPC be (xB, yB) and (xC, yC), respectively. Taking the coordinates (xA, yA) as a reference, the coordinates (xB, yB) and (xC, yC) are known. Let V be the speed of sound (constant). Times TAM, TBM, and TCM are measured values. The times TAS, TBS, TCS are unknown, but their mutual time intervals are known.

Representatively, the coordinates (x, y) of the microphone MC1 are calculated by the following simultaneous equations 1 to 3 using the reception times TAM, TBM, and TCM by the microphone MC1. Here, "^2" means square.
(xA-x)^2+(yA-y)^2=(V^2)(TAM-TAS)^2 (1)
(xB-x)^2+(yB-y)^2=(V^2).(TBM-TBS)^2 (2)
(xC-x)^2+(yC-y)^2=(V^2).(TCM-TCS)^2 (3)
Note that the coordinates of the microphone MC2 are identified from the determined coordinates of the microphone MC1. Alternatively, the coordinates of the microphone MC2 may be calculated by the simultaneous equations 1 to 3 using the times TAM, TBM, and TCM by the microphone MC2. In this way, the coordinates (x, y) of the microphones MC1 and MC2 with respect to the speaker SPA are calculated. Therefore, the positional relationship between each of the microphones MC1 and MC2 and each of the speakers SPA, SPB, and SPC on the horizontal plane is known.

Since the arrangement position of the speaker SPA is set as the reference position PT and the arrangement position of the microphone MC1 is set as the reference position PB, the control unit 101 can specify the distance L from the position information between the speaker SPA and the microphone MC1. Furthermore, the trailer azimuth θ and ship azimuth φ can also be specified from the positional relationship of the speakers SPA, SPB, and SPC and the positional relationship of the microphones MC1 and MC2.

Note that the reference position PB may be set at a predetermined position on the ship 100, such as the center position between the microphones MC1 and MC2. Even in that case, the predetermined position of the ship 100 can be determined from the positions of the microphones MC1 and MC2, so the trailer azimuth θ, the ship azimuth φ, and the distance L can be specified.

According to the present embodiment, control unit 101 causes microphones MC1 and MC2 provided on ship 100 to receive sound signals emitted from speakers SPA, SPB, and SPC provided on trailer 200 . The control unit 101 controls the generation time of each sound signal (time TAS, TBS, TCS), the reception time of each sound signal at the microphones MC1 and MC2 (time TAM, TBM, TCM), and the relative positional relationship. , the positions of the microphones MC1 and MC2 are specified. Then, the control unit 101 identifies relative position information based on the identified positions of the microphones MC1 and MC2. Therefore, the same effects as in the first embodiment can be obtained in specifying the trailer azimuth θ, the vessel azimuth φ, and the distance L as the relative position information between the vessel 100 and the trailer 200 .

In addition, since the generation time (time TAS, TBS, TCS) of each sound signal is set to be different from each other, it becomes easy to distinguish which speaker is the source of the received sound signal, and erroneous identification of relative position information. can be suppressed. Note that it is not essential to shift the generation timing. From the standpoint of facilitating the identification of sources, for example, the frequencies of sounds emitted from speakers may be varied.

Moreover, since the sound signal is an ultrasonic signal, it is possible to suppress disturbance and specify the relative position information with high accuracy. It should be noted that it is not essential that the sound signal is an ultrasonic signal.

In addition, since the heights of the speakers SPA, SPB, and SPC in the vertical direction are substantially the same, the relative position information can be specified with high accuracy without considering the distance component in the vertical direction when calculating, and the load is reduced. be done. It is not essential that the speakers SPA, SPB, and SPC have the same height in the vertical direction. If the relative positional information is to be specified in consideration of the difference in the arrangement height of the speakers SPA, SPB, and SPC in the vertical direction, a term corresponding to the component in the vertical direction is provided in the above simultaneous equation, and the microphone Three-dimensional coordinates of MC1 and MC2 may be obtained. Alternatively, apart from the speakers SPA, SPB, and SPC, a fourth speaker whose position in the vertical direction is different from these speakers may be provided. Then, the relative position information may be identified from a simultaneous equation obtained by adding an equation corresponding to the fourth speaker to the three simultaneous equations described above.

(Third Embodiment)
FIG. 8 is a schematic top view of trailing system 1000 showing the arrangement of wave signal generator 201 and wave signal receiver 107 according to the third embodiment of the present invention. In the present embodiment, components employed as wave signal generating section 201 and wave signal receiving section 107 are different from those in the first embodiment, and the method of specifying relative position information is accordingly different. Other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment.

In this embodiment, three directional LEDs 151 , 152 and 153 are employed as wave signal generator 201 . Directional LEDs 151, 152, and 153, which are light emitting units, are centrally arranged at substantially the same position. In this embodiment, it is assumed that the wave signal is an optical signal, preferably infrared light. The optical signals emitted by the directional LEDs 151, 152, 153 are oriented in different directions. As shown in FIG. 8, due to the difference in directivity, the irradiation areas of the optical signals by the LEDs 151, 152 and 153 are the irradiation areas 151a, 152a and 153a. The flashing patterns of the light signals emitted by the LEDs 151, 152, and 153 are different from each other.

On the other hand, in the present embodiment, photodiodes (hereinafter, photodiodes FD1, FD2, and FD3), which are three light receiving units, are employed as the wave signal receiving unit 107 arranged on the ship 100 . The photodiodes FD1, FD2, and FD3 have light receiving ranges in different directions. The light receiving ranges of the photodiodes FD1, FD2, and FD3 are assumed to be light receiving ranges FD1a, FD2a, and FD3a, respectively. Preferably, the light receiving ranges FD1a, FD2a, FD3a do not overlap each other.

Here, the irradiation regions 151a, 152a, and 153a adjacent to each other have regions that overlap each other. Therefore, by distinguishing between non-overlapping regions and overlapping regions, five regions α1 to α5 can be obtained. That is, the single regions of the irradiation regions 151a, 152a, and 153a are the regions α1, α3, and α5, respectively. The overlapping region of the irradiation regions 151a and 152a is the region α2, and the overlapping region of the irradiation regions 152a and 153a is the region α4.

In the “position specifying process” in this embodiment, the driver positions the trailer 200 on the slope R and causes the LEDs 151 , 152 , 153 to generate optical signals. The operator instructs the control unit 101 to start position specifying processing. As a result, the photodiodes FD1, FD2, and FD3 start receiving optical signals.

If the ship 100 is generally directed toward the trailer 200, the optical signal emitted from the wave signal generator 201 is received by one of the photodiodes FD1, FD2, and FD3. The control unit 101 identifies the ship heading φ depending on which one of the LEDs 151, 152, and 153 is the source of the optical signal received by one of the photodiodes FD1, FD2, and FD3. As described above, since the areas are divided into five areas, the ship azimuth φ can be specified in five stages depending on which area the source of the optical signal belongs to. The ship azimuths φ are associated with the regions α1 to α5 as φ1 to φ5, respectively. For example, if the source of the optical signal belongs to α2, the ship heading φ is identified as φ2.

Here, in order to easily distinguish between the areas α1 to α5, the blinking patterns of the optical signals emitted by the LEDs 151, 152, and 153 are different from each other and their phases are shifted. As shown in FIG. 8, the LED 151 has the largest number of pulses of light within a certain period of time, and the LED 152 has the smallest. Therefore, at α1, α3, and α5, optical signals of one type of fixed blinking pattern are received. Further, since the phases are shifted from each other, in the area α2, the fine blinking pattern of the LED 151 and the rough blinking pattern of the LED 152 are alternately received. Similarly, in the area α4, light is alternately received in a rough blinking pattern by the LED 152 and a moderate blinking pattern by the LED 153 . Thus, the regions α1 to α5 can be distinguished from the repetition of the blinking pattern.

On the other hand, the controller 101 identifies the trailer azimuth θ depending on which of the photodiodes FD1, FD2, and FD3 receives the optical signal from the wave signal generator 201 . Photodiodes FD1, FD2, and FD3 are associated with trailer azimuths θ as θ1, θ2, and θ3. For example, if an optical signal is received by the photodiode FD2, the trailer azimuth θ is identified as θ2.

To give another example, when the photodiode FD1 enters the irradiation area 151a and the LED 151 enters the light receiving range FD1a of the FD1, the ship azimuth φ is specified as φ1 and the trailer azimuth θ is specified as θ1. be done.

According to the present embodiment, the LEDs 151, 152, and 153 emit directional optical signals, and the ship's bearing φ is specified by the source of the optical signals received by the photodiodes FD1, FD2, and FD3. In particular, since the blinking patterns of the optical signals emitted by the LEDs 151, 152, and 153 are different from each other and are out of phase with each other, the ship heading φ can be specified by dividing into finer areas α1 to α5.

Also, the trailer azimuth θ is specified depending on which one of the photodiodes FD1, FD2, and FD3 receives the optical signal.

Therefore, the same effects as in the first embodiment can be obtained in specifying the trailer azimuth θ and the ship azimuth φ as the relative position information between the vessel 100 and the trailer 200 .

Moreover, since the LEDs 151, 152, and 153 emit infrared light, the influence of disturbance can be suppressed. In addition, it is not essential that the optical signal is infrared light. Also, it is not essential that the LEDs 151, 152, and 153 blink. For example, the LEDs 151, 152, and 153 may emit light in different colors so that the source can be distinguished.

Note that the number of directional LEDs and the number of photodiodes are not limited to three. If it is desired to specify the ship azimuth φ and the trailer azimuth θ in more detail, the number of directional LEDs and photodiodes may be increased. Also, if the effect of determining the ship azimuth φ or the trailer azimuth θ is not required, the number of directional LEDs or photodiodes may be one.

In each of the above-described embodiments, the control unit 101 in the ship 100 has the function of position specifying processing for specifying relative position information. However, it is not limited to this, and the function of position specifying processing may be provided in the trailer 200, or may be provided in an external communication device such as a smart phone.

In each of the above embodiments, the wave signal generator 201 is provided in the trailer 200 and the wave signal receiver 107 is provided in the ship 100. It can be reversed. That is, the wave signal generator 201 is arranged on a first object, which is either the ship 100 or the trailer 200, and the wave signal receiver 107 is arranged on a second object, which is the other of the ship 100 or the trailer 200. may be placed in

The wave signal generator 201 may be provided on one of the pier and the ship, and the wave signal receiver 107 may be provided on the other of the pier and the ship. In this case, the wave signal generator 201 or the wave signal receiver 107 may be arranged on either the left or right side of the ship. By doing so, it becomes easier to control the ship maneuvering to bring the ship alongside the pier based on the specified relative position information. Alternatively, the wave signal generator 201 may be provided on one ship and the wave signal receiver 107 may be provided on the other ship. This makes it easier for one ship to track the other ship.

Although the present invention has been described in detail based on its preferred embodiments, the present invention is not limited to these specific embodiments, and various forms without departing from the gist of the present invention can be applied to the present invention. included. Some of the above-described embodiments may be combined as appropriate.

For example, although the method of the third embodiment is a simple method, compared to the first and second embodiments, the ship heading φ and the trailer heading θ can only be specified roughly. Therefore, a two-stage identification method may be adopted in which the technique of the third embodiment is implemented and then the first embodiment or the second embodiment is implemented. That is, after roughly identifying the ship azimuth φ and the trailer azimuth θ by the method of the third embodiment, the operator brings the ship 100 closer to the trailer 200 based on these identification results, or moves the trailer 200 toward the trailer 200. The ship 100 is moved so as to be caught in front. Thereafter, the control unit 101 performs the first embodiment or the second embodiment to identify the distance L, and more accurately identify the ship azimuth φ and the trailer azimuth θ.

The present invention is not limited to jet boats, and can be applied to various types of watercraft propelled by outboard motors, inboard motors, or inboard/outboard motors.

100 Ship 101 Control Unit 107 Wave Signal Receiver 200 Trailer 201 Wave Signal Generator 131, 132, 133 LED 134 Camera 151, 152, 153 Directional LED FD1, FD2, FD3 Photodiode MC1 , MC2 Microphone, SPA, SPB, SPC Speaker

Claims (24)

a wave signal generator disposed on a first object, either a ship or a trailer for loading said ship, for generating wave signals from at least three different positions with known relative positions to each other; ,
a wave signal receiver disposed on a second object, which is the other of the ship or the trailer, for receiving a wave signal emitted from each position of the wave signal generator;
Based on the wave signals from each of the positions received by the wave signal receiving unit, relative position information between the ship and the trailer, including at least the bearing of the second object as viewed from the first object, is obtained. a locating unit for locating; and a locating system. said wave signal is an optical signal;
2. The localization system of claim 1, wherein the wave signal receiver is an imaging device. The imaging device generates an image including each position as a subject,
wherein the position specifying unit extracts a bright spot from the generated image and specifies the relative position information based on the position of the bright spot in the image and the relative positional relationship. Item 3. The position specifying system according to item 2. The three different positions include a first position, a second position that differs longitudinally from the first position, and a third position that differs laterally from the second position. 4. The position location system of claim 3, comprising and not vertically aligned. 3. The position specifying unit specifies the orientation of the first object as seen from the second object based on the position in the left-right direction of the bright spot corresponding to the first position in the image. 5. The localization system according to 4. The position specifying unit determines, in the image, an intermediate position between the bright point corresponding to the second position and the bright point corresponding to the third position, and the bright point corresponding to the first position, 6. The position specifying system according to claim 4, wherein the orientation of said second object as seen from said first object is specified based on the distance in the horizontal direction. The position specifying unit measures the distance in the left-right direction between the luminescent point corresponding to the second position and the luminescent point corresponding to the third position in the image, and the second position as seen from the first object. 7. The localization system of claim 6, wherein the distance between the first object and the second object is determined based on the orientation of the object. 8. The position specifying system according to any one of claims 4 to 7, wherein said second and third positions are vertically different positions with respect to said first position. 9. The position location system of any one of claims 2-8, wherein the wave signal is infrared light. 10. The position specifying system according to claim 9, wherein said wave signal generator blinks said infrared light in a specific pattern. the wave signal is a sound signal;
2. The position location system of claim 1, wherein the wave signal receiver includes two microphones. each of the two microphones receives a sound signal emitted from each of the locations;
The position specifying unit specifies the relative position information based on the generation time of each sound signal from each position, the reception time of each sound signal at the microphone, and the relative positional relationship. 12. The location system of claim 11, wherein: The position specifying unit determines the positions of the two microphones based on the generation time of each sound signal from each of the positions, the reception time of each sound signal at the microphone, and the relative positional relationship. Based on the identified positions of the two microphones, the distance between the first object and the second object, the distance from the second object as the relative position information between the ship and the trailer. 13. The localization system of claim 12, wherein the orientation of the first object as seen and the orientation of the second object as seen from the first object are determined. 14. The position specifying system according to any one of claims 11 to 13, wherein said wave signal generating section makes the sound signal generation time from each of said positions different from each other. 15. The position specifying system according to any one of claims 11 to 14, wherein the vertical heights of the positions in the wave signal generator are substantially the same. 16. The localization system of any one of claims 11-15, wherein the sound signal is an ultrasound signal. the wave signals emitted from the respective positions are optical signals that have directivity and point in different directions;
the wave signal receiving portion includes a light receiving portion;
The position specifying unit specifies the orientation of the second object as viewed from the first object, depending on which of the positions the light signal received by the light receiving unit is generated. 2. The localization system according to claim 1. irradiating regions of optical signals emitted from positions pointing in directions adjacent to each other among the respective positions have overlapping regions;
18. The location system of claim 17, wherein the flashing patterns of said light signals are different from each other. The wave signal receiving unit includes two or more light receiving units having light receiving ranges in different directions,
19. The position specifying unit according to claim 17 or 18, wherein said position specifying unit specifies the orientation of said first object as seen from said second object by a light receiving unit that has received an optical signal among said two or more light receiving units. locating system. 20. The position location system of any one of claims 17-19, wherein the wave signal is infrared light. a plurality of light emitting units arranged on the first object and emitting optical signals having directivity and directed in different directions;
a light receiving unit disposed on the second object and configured to receive optical signals emitted from the plurality of light emitting units;
The position specifying unit determines the orientation of the second object as seen from the first object, depending on which one of the plurality of light emitting units is the source of the optical signal received by the light receiving unit. 2. The position determination system of claim 1, wherein the position determination system determines the . 22. A position location system according to any preceding claim, wherein the first object is the trailer and the second object is the watercraft. A vessel being the first object or the second object in the localization system of any one of claims 1 to 21,
A vessel comprising the localization unit of the localization system. A marine trailer being the first object or the second object in the localization system of any one of claims 1 to 21,
A marine trailer comprising the localization part of the localization system.

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